Dog rescue is a sad and dark place but as a rescuer regardless of all the horrible things you see... the abuse, the neglect, the death, the ones you can't help, the mean and cruel people... you deal with it for the dogs. You put on a happy face and you deal. This blog is to help one dog rescuer deal and hopefully show other rescuers they are not alone, even though it feels like that most of the time.

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

People often say to me I would much rather have a puppy then an adult dog because then I can train them to be the way I want. With adult dogs you just don't know what they have been through so you don't know what you are going to get.

I TOTALLY DISAGREE WITH THAT! Ok, yes true you don't know what they have been through but you TOTALLY know what you are going to get.

As with several of my adopters I became friends with a couple that has 3 JRT's. The first 2 they adopted just as I was getting started with fostering dogs. I wasn't really involved with the rescue, fostering or placing of the first 2. They were both adult dogs. Their 3rd dog I facilitated the adoption but again wasn't that involved in the rescue or fostering of dog #3. Dog #3 was just a puppy when they adopted her. I remember she was fostered with a women in MI, just over the Ohio boarder. Of course was wtih all puppies we didn't have her in rescue for very long.

Fast forward 4 years laster. Dog #3 has been a bit of an alpha dog. Causing fights from time to time and NOT being able to be in the same room as the wife's parent's dog. Last night was the final and ultimate straw. Dog #3 went crazy attacking one of the other dogs in the house. This wasn't a you made me mad so grrrr moment this was a attacking to go in for the kill I hate you blood everywhere can't get them apart type of thing.

THIS IS A VERY GOOD EXAMPLE OF WHY I STAY IN TOUCH!!!!!

The husband calls me and says "Amy what am I supposed to do? I can not have this going on in my house ESPECIALLY with my 1 year old being right there when this all happened." I told him I 100% agree with him. If him and I wouldn't have been in contact all these years my reaction would be bring her back to me. BUT since we do keep in contact and have become friends becauase I keep in contact I knew Dog #3 was NOT adoptable. She has issues that can not be resolved, this is not the first issue they and I have had while baby sitting her of her being dog aggressive and things are starting to get worse.

Many lessons learned here:
#1. This is a great example of why I stay in contact with adopters. Make sure that things are going ok, try to help them through issues and think of it this way.... lets pretend I DO NOT keep in touch Dog #3 could have been taken to another shelter, could have been re homed by the current owners or they could have called me to return her and since I don't know her history because I didn't keep in touch I would have taken her back and placed her. AND WHAT COULD THAT HAVE LEAD TO???? Simple a child being hurt, Dog #3 being abused, Dog #3 being put to sleep at the hands of a stranger or even being killed by another dog that she started a fight with that well was bigger then her or more mean! NONE of those sound good to me.

so for those who say "I should NOT keep in contact" or refuse to sign the contract b/c I do keep in contact.. what do you think now???

#2. Just because you get a dog as a puppy DOES NOT MEAN YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE GETTING!!!!!!

#3. Sometimes doing the RIGHT thing for your family and aggressive dog is hard but at least they aren't DUMPED at a shelter wondering how did I get her or being abused or suffering in mental pain any longer.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Last week was out of control. I barely slept. SERIOUSLY! I had a total of 15 hours of sleep in 3 nights. The fund raiser did go really well and we raised a lot of money so hopefully that helps my BBF not stress out since Madde's care is going to cost so much. Not to mention the girl is spending crazy mad money on gas driving to and from the hospital.

The dog rescue is going ok. Took in 5 dogs in a week but had a few adopted. I still have dogs that I NEVER thought I would have this long, including a 3 month old GSD puppy. All his siblings were adopted but he is left behind :-( I know it is because he isn't black and tan but ALL black. He is a good puppy but definitely needs a family of his own SOON! I still have Luke who is now a 6 months old... how the heck I still have that dog is BEYOND me, he is so good. AND CUTE!!

Some of the foster homes are on a break which is good for them, they need to do that so they don't get burned out but stinks for me or really the dogs b/c I can't take in any new ones, I am totally full with 18 dogs at my house.

OH Mr. Crazy has been SO quiet since I put up the security cameras. He doesn't come outside and antagonize the dogs. It is so nice to not have to worry about "what he might do next" because well I have him on video tape should he do something AND I have proof that I am not doing anything. Because you know you are ACTUALLY guilty until you prove yourself innocent.

And the photo album lady is at it again. She is appealing the judges decision that she isn't owed any money. So, I guess that battle continues.

AND the people that stole the dog are still harassing me...

I really wish people would just go on with their lives. 2011 Suck Fest continues.

Monday, June 13, 2011

Seriously, what are the chances that you pull a dog out of the pound and it is fixed. SLIM TO NONE! Well this weekend I took 3 dogs out of the pound and ALL 3 were already FIXED. HOLY COW!!!

So, good for me. That is way less running around trying to get them scheduled for surgery for me. YAY!

And the cool thing is one already left for a foster home. WOOOHOO!!

This week is going to be CRAZY CRAZY BUSY and I need to be on my "A" game. So much to do with the dogs and getting ready for the Fundraiser for my best friend's baby on Thursday AND getting ready for the adoption event on Saturday.

Friday, June 10, 2011

I keep telling myself to get rid of negative Debbie downer people and I keep telling myself to STOP helping everyone else and start helping myself. Oh and I keep telling myself that I don't have to do everything, that I can accept help and that others can do it just as good as I can.

Now I am not just talking about dog rescue here, I am talking about EVERYTHING in my life. Yea, yea I know I am a control freak... I work really hard on not being one though. LOL! I also work really hard at my NON tolerance for stupidity and let me tell you working in dog rescue I have to work on that every day because WOW people amaze me. LOL My one rescue friend and I always say Stuck on Stupid. How did they make it this far in life without falling down more. LOL

As I wrote about before I have been focusing a lot on my friends baby. Just so heart breaking and I have been doing what I can to try to raise money for her. Well several people have not been very nice about what I am doing.. telling me what I should do or how I should do it and getting mad at me for not doing it a certain way or not including them more or whatever. Honestly, if it wasn't my best friend I so would have been like you know what people FU and walked away. But regardless of what they are doing to me it is my best friend and I would do anything for her. I did talk to the one person and tell him that his comments are hurtful and I have other responsibilities in my life like Work, my Farm, my Husband, my Dog Rescue and then on top of all if it trying to plan two benefits. Planning a benefit is a lot of work and stress and I don't need him saying hurtful things to make it more stressful. That conversation actually went pretty well. Hopefully that will squash that.

I just don't understand why people have to make things that have NOTHING to do with them all about them. Seriously!

The other person who is being super nasty honestly isn't worth my time. Granted it is a person that I will have to see and often but I am not gong to be mean but I am not going to be nice either. Just treat them like a stranger. I think that person being so nasty probably upset me the most probably b/c it was so so so uncalled for and totally off base. And honestly the other people saying stuff.. some I don't know and some I do but when they say a nasty comment I just say OK well then you do it. That usually shuts them up.

Seriously who needs the drama? NOT ME! Thank you.. I have enough dogs causing me drama. I don't think people really honestly get how stressful running a dog rescue is... it is always a balancing act to make sure everyone is happy. It is always a balancing act of which dog do I think would be ok in which foster home. And then if the dog doesn't work out in the foster home taking it back to my house or finding it another place to go asap. I am not complaining about what I have to do, don't get me wrong. I just don't think that people realize the stress that goes along with it and so they pile more crap on me and wonder why I can't handle it.

Just imagine if you planned on doing something a certain way and in the middle of doing it a total 180 and EVERYTHING you had planned was no longer valid. Maybe I am just too much of a control freak but that stresses me out. If I have expectations of how something should go and it doesn't go that way... ugh! Stress city. But if I don't have an expectation of a certain thing happening and something does get messed up it totally doesn't stress me out.

Does that make sense? I hope so.

Well anyways, I still have two GSD mix puppies looking for homes and Lucky the Chihuahua Min Pin mix was supposed to get adopted but he decided to run away instead. UGH! Stupid dog. He ran away Wednesday night and I hadn't spotted him until this morning. Now if I could catch him.

I hope I catch him before he becomes Coyote food. And I am being serious. I have a feeling I will catch him this weekend... let's hope that really happens.

I haven't heard anything from MR.Crazy since I put up the Security Camera System. I love it. It has inferred so I can sit in my office and watch the goats and donkeys eating in the front pasture and I can watch the kitties in the driveway. LOL It was funny last night my mom let the dogs out the side door and I watched them run out of the house and into the drive way.. LOL! So cool.

As for the people who stole my dog, still being mean... you would think they would realize NONE of this wold have ever happened if they would have just signed the contract... so stupid, why do people have to be so mean.

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

I get so frustrated with people. I understand that dog pounds are EVIL but they are a necessary evil. If someone looses there dog that is the first place they should check and check every day until their dog if found. So in turn if you find a dog TAKE IT TO THE POUND!

By Federal all all pounds have to keep a stray dog with no tags for 3 open business days. That means you find the dog Saturday... Saturday and Sunday do not count as a business day and if they pound is closed on Monday then that day doesn't count either so that means Tuesday Wednesday and Thursday do count. That give someone almost a week before their dog can be euthanized or sold. And if the owner REALLY cared they would be calling the pound non stop looking for their dog. AND if you are so freaking worried about this dog that you found being put to sleep then go there on the 3rd day and adopt it.

I am just a little pissed off because a girl I grew up with called me looking for her JRT. She is 9 years old and spayed very much loved and taken care of but dogs will be dogs and she ran off. She searched for the dog and was told by a worker at the local town grocery store that two women picked up a dog matching that description in the parking lot and said they were going to take it to the shelter. Well poor girl checked the dog pound and NOPE checked every shelter she could think of and NOPE! I am so pissed. I guarantee you that either so rescue took in the dog and is going to place it up for adoption or one of the two ladies just decided to keep it.

IT IS SOMEONE'S DOG! FOR GOD SAKE! UGH!!!

Shit happens, dogs run off, just because it ran off doesn't mean someone doesn't love it.

Same bull shit happened last year... a family beagle that they had gotten the week before escaped from their fence. They searched and searched for the dog. A women found it and decided because it wasn't fixed that the people weren't good owners and she wasn't going to give it back. OMG! Well if the lady wouldn't be such a B she would have learned that their was already an appointment for the dog to be fixed but they only had it a week so it wasn't fixed yet.

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

I have been overwhelmed busy between dogs and my BFF's baby girl in the hospital. She had brain surgery on Thursday and seems to be doing better now. Yesterday she was able to hold her head up and last night she had her first REAL meal since the accident. Poor thing.

I have had a few dogs adopted in the last week which is good but I still have two puppies left. Can't believe it. I guess I need to send out a Grapevine message and see if I can get them placed. I would really like to see them in homes by the weekend.

I really wish I had time to do an adoption event but I am OVERWHELMED with stuff to do. Between work and Madde and the benefit fundraiser I am barely holding it all together, I am running on fumes.

I have open foster homes and no dogs to give them.. partly because the ones I have at my house are high energy and won't work in the foster homes I have... hmmm...

There are about 4 dogs at the local pound I want to get... so tempting..maybe I will do that today after work.. which means I need to bust my ass to get a bunch of stuff done so I can get the heck out of here early :-)

Thursday, June 2, 2011

You would think after being in dog rescue as long as I have been you would think you have heard it all. Then today at work I was asked by one of the cafeteria workers "Amy, I need a favor. My mom is looking for a Maltese. She wants to breed it."

OMG are you kidding me??!!

I am pretty speechless after this one... so on a brighter note, here are some pictures of the puppies :-)